1. Learning to Read
Using
Synthetic Phonics
Your
School Logo
Here

2. Introducing… Joe Blogs Names here. 2
Write the names of each presenter here and ensure that they are introduced. Introduce any other teachers who may be involved with the teaching of a synthetic phonics programme. 2

3. Something to think about!
More than any other subject or skill, our children’s futures are all but determined by how well they learn to read. 
Explain that the following quotes are not meant to alarm parents but rather reinforce the important role that reading plays in every child’s life. Tell parents that it’s statistics like these that make the school focus on ensuring that every child succeeds. The following quotes come from the website
Children of the Code 2005 3

4. Something to think about!
Statistically, more American children suffer long-term life-harm from the process of learning to read than from parental abuse, accidents, and all other childhood diseases and disorders combined.   
The same applies in Britain. To be able to read gives a child access to what is happening in the classroom.
Children of the Code 2005

5. Something to think about!
In purely economic terms, reading related difficulties cost the U.S. more than the war on terrorism, crime, and drugs combined. 
Children of the Code 2005

6. What’s Happening? A good, hard look at literacy rates world wide.
An acknowledgement that there needs to be improvement.
A return to evidence based decision making in schools.
A back to the “New Basics” way of teaching beginning reading.
Explain that all over the English speaking world there is debate about the best way to teach beginning reading. As well as in the UK, the USA and Australia are both now recommending the teaching of beginning reading with synthetic phonics. 6

7. Teaching Reading
We recognise that the teaching of reading has attracted the interest of the media in recent times.
Synthetic phonics is no fad. It is based on findings of evidence-based research about how children best learn to read.
Every school in England and Wales now needs to teach reading with Synthetic Phonics.
Share with parents that your school chose this method of teaching early reading because it is based in the research. You may like to share your knowledge of Clackmannanshire or the Rose Review 7

8. What is synthetic phonics?
This is a method that teaches children how spoken words are composed of sounds called phonemes and, how the letters in words correspond to those phonemes.
Synthetic does not mean artificial. It means the synthesizing or bringing together of sounds to make a word

9. Reading
The process of reading involves 'decoding' words into separate phonemes, so that words can be read.
We call this blending of sounds ‘MAKING”
We identify the sounds (phonemes) from what is written down then “make” the word through blending

10. Writing and Spelling
The process of writing or spelling involves ‘encoding’. Listening for each phoneme in a word and representing it with a letter(s).
This segmenting of words is called ‘BREAKING’.
So synthetic phonics teaches spelling alongside reading. They are not separate processes. In effect, the words children can read are the words they can spell.

11. Is Synthetic Phonics a Fad?
No!
It has been heavily researched. Some studies tracked student achievement for as long as 7 years.
These studies were done in Scotland. There are studies from across the English speaking world Backing this position up.

12. Independent Review of the Teaching of Early Reading
The Rose Review
Department for Education and Skills
Independent Review of the Teaching of Early Reading
Final Report, Jim Rose, March 2006
This brought synthetic phonics into every school in England and Wales. It also emphasised the importance of teaching the parents about the process.

13. What were the Recommendations?
The review states:
English is a difficult language to learn to read.
We have 44 sounds but only 26 letters to make these sounds
Schools need to teach how to make these sounds
They need to do this with synthetic phonics
We need to teach spelling alongside reading
The sounds of the letters are more important than the letter names, especially at first. 13

14. Let’s recap, so we can do a bit of learning!
Explain that we will experience a little of what the children do every day, but first let’s get our head around the terminology. 14

15. Synthetic Phonics – What’s it mean?
Teaching the sounds of the English language and how these sounds (phonemes) can be written as letters.
You may like to replace this with your own definition, or the one used in your curriculum document. 15

16. Fast - Efficient - Effective
A group of letters is introduced at a time.
smctgpao
This is group 1 in smctgpao. At this point you could demonstrate how once children know these phonemes and have learnt how to ‘make and break’ just how many words you can actually make using these letters. It’s a lot. Give it a try! And all of that after just a handful of days at school! 16

17. s m c t g p a o That many letters? Why?
How many words can you make with these letters?
s m c t g p a o
Explain that we introduce so many letters so that words can be read and spelt from the very first lesson. Have parents think about the words you can make from these letters. 17

18. So…how many could you make?
Wow! That’s a lot for a week at school!
Explain that we introduce so many letters so that words can be read and spelt from the very first lesson. 18

19. Synthetic Phonics
After learning how to recognise and pronounce each of the phonemes, your child will learn to ‘sound out’ simple words and to blend the phonemes together to read these words.
/c/ /a/ /t/……..cat etc
The three sounds are blended into the word 19

20. Synthetic Phonics
Fast!
At first we will concentrate on simple sound to letter correspondence.
This is when a phoneme is represented by a single letter as in the word /m/ /a/ /t/.
At first it is mainly one to one with each sound having a single representation/letter 20

21. Synthetic Phonics
Efficient!
Then we will concentrate the more difficult code such as one phoneme represented by 2 letters.
sh ch th wh
Remind parents even though there are two letters, it is still one phoneme. all of this is done in around 16 weeks or so. 21

22. Synthetic Phonics Effective!
When that is mastered, your child will learn the more advanced code.
This is when a single phoneme can be represented by many letters.
The following slide shows an example using the phoneme ay. 22

23. Here is an example. a - paper ay – play ey - hey a-e – spade
eigh – eight
ei – as in vein
ai – as in plain
Explain that even though it looks confusing, children master this code quite quickly and that all children will be monitored to ensure nobody get left behind! 23

24. But there are some irregular, tricky words!
The camera word
We need to learn these my heart
Not only are they high frequency but are also difficult to decode
For some words that occur often and children like to use in their writing we teach the high frequency, irregular words using the camera word approach. The child identifies the parts of the word that he/she already knows and then takes a picture in their minds eye of the tricky part.

25. How can you help?
By pronouncing the phonemes in the correct way. See:
By helping your child with “MAKE and BREAK’ activities at home.
By reading quality synthetic phonics home readers every night.
By filling in the Home Reading Journal every night
You may like to break out into workshops. This is so a small group of parents can work with teachers, to ensure they really do know how to pronounce the phonemes and conduct “Make and Break’ activities.
Most importantly get as much pleasure from your child’s success as they do. Make it a pleasurable experience for both of you. 25

26. What your child will be learning this year
Term 1 & 2
s m c t g p a o
r l d f h I u
v w y z j n k e
ll ss ff zz
sh ch th wh
ck ng qu x
Alongside 36 camera words

27. What your child will be learning this year
Term 3
CCVC/CVCC/VCC
ee ea y e
i igh y ie i_e
o oa ow o_e
a ai ay a_e
oo ew ue u_e
This is the more advanced code
Show how bee, meat, happy, me all have the same /ea/ sound
Alongside 36 camera words